4.21.2011

loving la jolla.

We Southern Californians are just spoiled. Think about it... two hours to the north: Santa Barbara; two hours to the east: Palm Desert; two hours to the south: San Diego. And, there's a load of other options in between.

We are not totally impulsive people, but we took our time planning our anniversary weekend. Actually, we just procrastinated for no good reason other than indecision. In fact, on Friday morning, we woke up without a plan and a hotel reservation. But, by about 1 p.m., we were headed south with to-go snack packs packed. Here's a quick snapshot of our lovely weekend in La Jolla.

Hotel to put on your list: Estancia La Jolla Hotel & Spa. I stayed there three years ago for Krisa's bachelorette party, and it's a great retreat-type hotel with beautiful grounds, friendly staff and affordable rates (really affordable if you check some of the discount travel sites). Oh, and I should mention: the food is really excellent (live Spanish guitarist in the evenings!), and there's a wine library.

Brides: the Estancia is a must see for those considering wedding venues in the Southern California area (while we were there, we saw two real brides and one faux for a wedding photography workshop). We have friends who were married there almost two years ago, and for that, I'm so envious!

The La Jolla village and coastline is a short 4 miles from the Estancia, and we spent Sunday eating, walking and gawking. It was just beautiful.

Must-eat in La Jolla: The Cottage. Highly recommend the brioche french toast and a floater dish to share. Eddie picked eggs benedict. BTW: his egg-white breakfast burrito was yum-o.

I love that once a year, we stop, celebrate and remember special life moments, like getting married. It doesn't always mean a weekend getaway, but when it does, I feel so blessed. Especially when the sun is shining. And it involves maple syrup and powdered sugar.

I found your blog only recently through Mary at t&f but somehow stumbled into this post. We moved last year from San Diego (we lived downtown in Little Italy) and the french toast at the Cottage was one of my favorite dishes in the ENTIRE city! We ALWAYS recommend to our friends who visit to go there, I swear it is like a little hidden gem because despite a lot of tourists in LJ, it never seems to be too crowded and it is SO quaint. It was fun to look at your recap- regular blog reader here now!

I'm Alison and I’m a blog-reader-turned writer. I love details, décor, fresh flowers, paper and the color white. I'm a publicist in the events industry, sharing adventures in cooking, entertaining and life in our tiny beach house in Southern California.